Commonwealth Second Amendment, a MA gun rights group, has filed suit against four MA police chiefs for violating Second Amendment rights by imposing unreasonable and unlawful restrictions on concealed carry applicants.

__________________Violence is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and valorous feeling which believes that nothing is worth violence is much worse. Those who have nothing for which they are willing to fight; nothing they care about more than their own personal safety; are miserable creatures who have no chance of being free, unless made and kept so by the exertions of those better than themselves. Gary L. Griffiths, Chief Instructor, Advanced Force Tactics, Inc. (Paraphrasing John Stuart Mill)

This suit challenges Defendants’ imposition of “sporting,” “hunting,” and/or “target” restrictions on handgun licenses. These restrictions prevent Plaintiffs from using handguns for the purpose self-protection, which contravenes “the right of the people to keep and bear arms” that the Second Amendment secures.

Heller recognized a "right to possess and carry weapons in case of confrontation." Restricting the carriage of weapons to "sporting" or "hunting" uses would violate that.

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Sometimes it’s nice not to destroy the world for a change.
--Randall Munroe

Order is out. Case is being certified to MA Supreme Judicial Court. Judge notes the policies of these police chiefs may violate MA state laws, and wants to avoid the 2A question.
These chiefs have a policy of not issuing unrestricted licenses to first time applicants, no matter their reason.
The order also notes the split with Peruta/Moore and CA2-4. When first reading it I got the strong impression the judge would rule in our favor. But he seems reluctant to pull the trigger.
I see this as a signal that he's allowing the MA state court to make this case go away.

Looks like the judge is punting the ball down the road and hoping it is either resolved by a referral to the state courts or a decision by the U.S. Supreme Court specifically addressing the right to carry outside the home.

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Jim's Rules of Carry: 1. Any gun is better than no gun. 2. A gun that is reliable is better than a gun that is not. 3. A hole in the right place is better than a hole in the wrong place. 4. A bigger hole is a better hole.

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